


Anne's First Halloween

by IAmAwesomeMe



Series: Modern Middle School AU [2]
Category: Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery, Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-23
Updated: 2018-02-23
Packaged: 2019-03-22 20:06:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13771560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmAwesomeMe/pseuds/IAmAwesomeMe
Summary: It's Anne's first Halloween. There's a lot of shirbet moments.





	Anne's First Halloween

It was a Wednesday in mid-October. There was a nip in the air, but few leaves started to change colour. Gilbert walked to school quietly, a few steps behind Anne and Diana. Over the past month his courtship of Anne had gone nowhere. He watched all the disney movies he could get his hands on, read all the famous fantasy and romance novels he could think of, but whenever he tried to talk to Anne she turned her nose up at him. Not that he got many opportunities to talk to her alone, Anne was always with Diana. They were attached at the hips, Mr. Barry having forgiven Anne for the first day’s event after Gilbert went to his office explaining how it was his fault and demanding a lesser sentence for Anne. It didn’t do anything, but at least Mr. Barry allowed his daughter to still talk to Anne. That won him Diana’s favour, who now loved the idea of Gilbert dating Anne, but not Anne’s. Anne was resolute as ever to hate him. At least now Gilbert had a spy within Anne’s inner circle to help him win her heart. Diana would occasionally loudly ask Anne if she liked such and such Disney movie which Anne would respond with a resounding “YES!” and Gilbert would interrupt  their conversation with a “Oh my god, I love it too!” Anne would roll her eyes, so Gilbert would prove he knew the movie beyond just saying he knew it for Anne’s sake. Bear in mind, he only watched it for Anne’s sake, but he could still list off all the characters and plot points, as well as give a brief feminist critique on it because he knew Anne was not blind to what Snow White and Sleeping Beauty had to say about consent and complained about it often to Diana. Anne would walk away, or quickly change the subject, but Gilbert would smile at the little bit of one-sided interaction. Up ahead, they were talking about Halloween. 

“I want to be an angel,” Diana said. “You get to wear a white flowy dress.”

“Hopefully a long one,” Anne commented.

“What do you mean?” Diana asked.

“Halloween is supposed to be about costumes and escapism,” Anne explained, “not short skirts and having an excuse to show as much skin as possible. I hate what the holiday has become.” Gilbert crossed off any shirtless costume he was going to consider wearing to show off his abs.

“Don’t worry,” Diana assured her, “it will be long enough to marry in.” Anne laughed at that. “What will you be?” Diana continued to ask. Gilbert strained his ears to catch Anne's response.

“I don’t know,” Anne responded. “I never had this opportunity in previous years, so I want my first real Halloween to be a good one.”

“Do you want to be a Disney princess?” Diana wondered.

“No, I’m too old for it,” she replied. “What about Hermione? From Harry Potter?”

“Around 6 or 7 years ago,” Diana reminisced, “right before the last movie came out, at the hight of Harry Potter craziness, everyone was dressed as someone from Harry Potter. You looked out and it was just a sea of lightning scars.”

“I would have liked to be there,” Anne wished.

“We could recreate it,” Diana offered. “You be Hermione, I’ll be Harry.”

“No, you want to be an angel,” Anne reminded her friend. “I don’t want to do that to you. I’ll go as Hermione, you'll be my angel.”

“Ok,” Diana agreed. “But I will have my Harry wig, robes, and wand in the trunk of the car if you need backup.”

“Don’t you mean the boot?” Anne joked, using the British word. They both laughed, running ahead to school as Gilbert stayed behind, walking slow as ever.

He thought about Halloween. He was happy Anne was going as Hermione, mainly because she had a canon love interest in Ronald Weasley. He remembered the Halloween Diana was talking about, he went as Harry Potter. Josie went as Ginny and tried to kiss him. 

He got to school with time to spare as he made his way to the class room. Charlie and Moody were discussing Halloween as well. 

“I want to be something funny,” Charlie said, always the class clown.

“I want to be something cool,” Moody said. “Like James Bond.”

“You could never be James Bond,” Gilbert said, setting down his backpack but not taking a seat yet. He wanted to stretch his legs for a bit before sitting for the entire day.

“I could so!” Moody objected. Then, in the worst fake British accent Gilbert ever heard he added: “Shaken, not stirred.” 

Gilbert and Charlie laughed as “O, Canada” started. They all sung along, thanks to Anne’s lead on the first day. Then morning announcements started. No one really listened. They went back to talking about their costumes. 

-

Anne and Diana ate their lunch in the usual space. Most people stayed in for the first half hour and left to go outside in the second half. The kindergarten and first grade kids were forced onto that schedule so they could be better looked after. After that they were allowed to eat and leave whenever and Diana’s group took that as an opportunity to spend more time outside while Billy’s friends spent almost the entire hour indoors on their phones. Diana and Anne were done eating within the first 10 minutes and rushed outside. The rest of their friend group followed shortly. Gilbert, Charlie, and Moody ate a bit more slowly and went out after 25 minutes. They found Anne and Diana with their friends playing princess at the far edge of the junior field, where there were a few trees. They pretended they were a groups of sisters who were all princesses but their castle and land were taken by the evil Count Phillip. They had to survive in the woods, hiding from the Count’s Guards. 

Charlie got a soccer ball and the three of them dribbled back and forth on the junior field. Gilbert was an extraordinary soccer player, so he tried to show off. He ran back and forth with the doing fancy footwork. It was all in vain, though. Whenever he looked back, Ruby and Josie were looking but Anne wasn’t. Eventually, he gave up and walked over to where Anne was.

“Oh, how I wish my heart were a bird so you could see how much it flies when my eyes catch yours,” Gilbert said, walking over.

Anne looked up, briefly, but set her eyes down intently. “No one speaks like that,” she commented venomously.

Gilbert grinned. “You said that verbatim 2 days ago about Tom Hiddleston,” he reminded her.

Anne looked up at him furiously and looked like she wanted to object, but caught herself before exploding. Instead, she turned her head back to Diana. “Diana, I think we hear the Count’s Guards coming. We should run.” With that, she grabbed Diana’s hand and ran off. 

Gilbert let her run and went back to playing soccer, only with a little less showing off now.

-

That day after school, Gilbert did what he did every weekday after school. He stopped by the cafe to pick up a scone and cup of coffee. Then, he walked over to the library. Mrs. Allen greeter him with a smile and wave. He was a regular around here. He was slowly reading his was through the romance/fantasy/teen girls section. He went straight to his usual reading nook. He put down his coffee, snack, and backpack and stretched. It was so different to not have the heavy weight on his back. He vaguely wondered about the long term health effects of wearing such a heavy backpack everyday. He walked over to the romance section and selected “No Place For Magic.” It was a E. D. Baker novel that he was halfway through. Gilbert heard Anne recommend it to Diana once, saying Baker's were the fantasy/romance novels around. There were a lot of them, so Gilbert was slowly working his way through the series. After this, he had to read Gail Carson Levine’s bibliography. Ella Enchanted had what Anne deemed “The best love letter ever.” It was the one Char wrote to Ella, announcing his love and intentions for her. Apparently, Anne has memorized it she’s read it so many times. Then he wanted to reread Harry Potter, just to remind himself what happened. He also wanted to read Jane Eyer, Pride and Prejudice, and all the classic romance novels. He smiled as he walked back. He had a long reading list for this one girl. 

Suddenly, he heard Mrs. Allen speak up. “Hello, Anne,” she said. Gilbert perked up. He went over to check out what it was, but didn’t want to be seen so he creeps up behind the bookshelf. Sure enough, Anne was there. 

“Hello, dearest Mrs. Allen,” Anne replied, smiling. “I was wondering if you had any Harry Potter books I could read. I want to reread them if I am truly to be Hermione.”

“They are right there,” Mrs. Allen pointed them out, “and there’s a reading nook over there if you want to sit a spell.” Mrs. Allen pointed directly at Gilbert's nook, causing him to panic.

“Thank you so much,” Anne said, bouncing off to the Harry Potter section.

Gilbert panicked, rushing back to his chair. The other chair was all the way across the room. He pulled it closer, so that it was right next to his and she'd have to sit close. He tried to relax and look cool, leaning against the back of the chair. Then he decided that it would be better if he leaned forward. Then decided straight back would be best. He ruffled his hair, then patted it down, then ruffled it again. He straightened his jacket, self conscience about his appearance. He heard Anne’s footsteps approaching and leaned back again, opening his book to make it look like he was reading the entire time. He kept his eyes down as he heard Anne’s footsteps approach and stop.

“Gilbert?” she asked, shocked.

He looked up, pretending to be surprised. “Oh, nice to see you, Anne.”

She didn’t know how to respond, so she just nodded and went to the chair next to Gilbert, turning it around so that it was as far from Gilbert as possible, but didn’t move it away. Gilbert didn’t know if he should to interpret it as liking him. He couldn’t see the title of the book, but it was so small it could only be the first Harry Potter. 

They read there in silence for a few minutes. Gilbert wanted to get back to reading, he was two thirds of the way through and wanted to finish it today, but couldn’t concentrate with Anne right there. He needed to talk to her.

“Nice book,” he complimented her.

“Thanks,” Anne returned. “Harry Potter is always a classic. What are you reading?” She probably asked out of kindness, but he answered anyway.

“No Place For Magic,” he answered.

“By E. D. Baker?” she asked, surprised.

He smiled. “Well, someone recommended it so I thought I’d try it out.” 

Anne was surprised. “Oh.” She clearly didn’t know what to think.

“You know, if you are looking for something similar to Harry Potter, you could try Percy Jackson. You’ll love Annabeth, plus there’s a pretty strong romantic subplot since I know that appeals to you.” He figured a good book suggestion was the fastest way to win her trust.

“Thank you,” Anne said, making a mental note to check it out.

“You know,” Gilbert said, continuing with the suggestions, “if you really like romance and that, you could try watching Jane the Virgin. It’s a telenovela about a romance writer, but shot in a very tongue in cheek manner that’s hilarious.”

“I don’t watch that much T.V.” Anne explained.

“It’s just on Netflix,” Gilbert informed her.

“I don’t really have Netflix,” Anne said. “There’s an account for the hotel, but it’s only on the T.V. in the Living Room where all the guests are and it’s awkward to watch something with everyone there. It’s better to get out of the house when they don’t need me. Hence…” she gestured around herself at the library.

“I could bring over my laptop,” Gilbert offered hopefully. “We could watch it together.”

Gilbert only wanted to do something nice, but Anne was absolutely offended. She got up in a huff. “I am not one of those girls,” Anne said, packing up her stuff in a hurry. “I do not put out at the slightest hint of a smile. I have self respect and am not easily fooled by pretty faces and kindness.” 

She went in a hurry, but he tried to stop her and explain. “No, no, no. That’s not what I meant,” he started, but was cut off.

“I KNOW WHAT NETFLIX AND CHILL MEANS,” she screamed in the library, which was fine because they were the only two there, but still Mrs. Allen was shocked. “STAY AWAY FROM ME!” She ran out of there as fast as she could, leaving Gilbert to chid himself on moving too quickly. He went back to the reading nook. His coffee was done but he still had half his scone left. The Philosophers Stone was still on Anne’s chair, where she threw it while leaving in a hurry. He picked it up and tried to see if it still smelled like her. It didn’t. He went over to the fantasy section and put it back.

He sat down again and finished his book and scone in silence. He gave the book back to Mrs. Allen. 

“Sorry about the noise,” he said.

“It’s ok,” she assured him, “just, be careful with her. She’s a fragile girl.”

“I know. I just want to be there to support her,” he promised. He went to leave, but hesitated and turned around. “Actually, could you not tell anyone about this? I know gossip travels fast in this town, I don’t want this to be like the chalkboard thing from a last months.”

“I wasn’t going to tell anyone,” she promised, “but you are good for making sure.”

He nodded, thanked her for letting him stay there, and went home. 

When he got home, he let himself in using his key and hollered out to see where his dad was.

“Upstairs,” his dad hollered back down. He checked the time. It was 5:30. He should start making dinner, but instead went upstair to the legal offices of John Blyth. 

“How was your day?” Gilbert asked.

“Really long depositions I had to get through,” his dad answered. “How was yours?”

“Fine,” he said, omitting destroying what little relationship he had with Anne. “I’m going to make dinner. Any suggestions?”

“There’s a can of pasta sauce in the fridge and some spaghetti in the cupboard,” Gilbert left to make some pasta, but his dad wasn’t done. “Or, or,” he said, calling his son back, “there’s some naan in the freezer and cheese in the fridge if you want pita pizzas.”

“Oh, that sounds better,” Gilbert agreed. “Come down in 10 and be ready to eat.”

“Thanks, son,” his dad called as Gilbert went downstairs. He put his backpack down in his room and started dinner.

First, he preheated the oven. Next, he took the naan out and put it in the toaster to defrost it, but not cook it. While it was in the toaster he got out the tomato sauce and cheese. He grated the cheese, and put some aluminum foil over the pizza tray. When they popped, he put the naan on the pizza tray, topped it with tomato sauce and cheese, and put it in the oven. While it was cooking, he set the table. Lucky, pita pizza was mostly a finger food, but he set out knives anyway because he did not want to use the pizza cutter thing. When he was done, he checked them. They needed another minute, so Gilbert emptied the dishwasher while waiting. When he checked again, they were overcooked. He cursed himself as he went for a oven mitt to take it out. He split them evenly on both plates and waited for his father. His father did not come down.

“Dinner’s ready!” Gilbert called up. 

“Sorry!” He heard his dad coming down the stairs. “I got carried away.”

“It’s fine,” he assured his dad. “Sorry it’s a bit burnt.”

“Oh, it looks fine,” he assured his son, siting down. “Your cooking skills are coming along since-”

That hung in the air. Since Gilbert’s mom left Gilbert’s dad. Since she moved away. Since she made Gilbert choose which parent he wanted to stay with.

“Well,” Gilbert tried to lighten the mood, “I’ve had a lot of practice. Thank you.” They both went into silence, Gilbert's attempts unsuccessful. “How was the doctor’s appointment?” Gilbert asked, thinking that if the conversation was already at a low, it can't get worse if he asked about his dad's cancer.

“The tumour has grown, but we are starting chemo a week earlier so I had try and to do more work to get ahead. How about your school? Still top of your class?”

“Yes,” Gilbert said, “but there is a girl who I’m pretty sure will beat me soon. Or at least make me work for it.”

“Is this the same girl who you said cracked you head into the chalkboard on her first day? I know all the girls in Avonlea and none of them ever offered you any competition.”

“Yes, it’s Anne,” Gilbert confirmed. “She’s really smart. Mr. Phillips refuses to acknowledge it, but she’s a lot farther along than most people would be in her position, missing over a year of school, and most of the review. She asked a lot of stupid questions at the beginning but is now catching up. She’s so smart.” Gilbert sighed into the distance dreamily.

“So you have a crush on this girl?” his dad asked.

Gilbert tried to object but realised it was true. “Yes,” he confessed. “How do I get her to like me without scaring her away?”

John thought for a moment. “Let her know you are available, and let her come to you.”

“I try to, but it’s always too much.”

“Maybe try befriending her first, then offer yourself in a romantic way.”

“Ok. Friends first, marriage next.”

“Marriage!” his dad exclaimed. “You are serious about her!”

Gilbert smiled, he liked the idea of being serious.

-

A couple weeks later, it was Halloween. Everyone arrived in costume. Costume was mandatory in Elementary School but not in High School, so a lot of the kids in their class were kinda done with it at this point and phoned in their costumes using stuff from previous years. 

Charlie was the highlight. He got a metal trash can, cut out the bottom, beat it up a bit and added suspenders. He was trash! 

Diana was an angel with wings, halo and a nice long flowy dress. Josie was Cinderella. Moody was a sailor, having decided that a bespoke suit was too much. Anne was Hermione, and she spoke in a ok British accent. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better than anyone else’s. Gilbert arrived at school, drawing eyes. He had a Hogwarts robe, a Gryffindor tie, and a lightning scar. He was Harry Potter, the titular character. 

“I thought for sure you were going as Ron,” Charlie said.

“Especially with Anne loudly practicing her English accent over and over again with Diana in front of us,” Moody added.

This conversation happened in the classroom, loudly and in front of everyone, so Diana and her friend group were eyeing him suspiciously. In fact, everyone’s eyes were on Gilbert. Even Mr. Phillips, who never payed attention to what was happening in the class gossip. 

“Well,” Gilbert started, addressing the class more than Moody and Charlie, “I considered it, but ultimately decided that I would rather be Hermione’s dear friend than a problematic love interest.”

Everyone around him nodded in approval. Diana went to whisper something to Anne, who refused to turn around during the entire speech. Slowly, she turned to face Gilbert. He was looking directly at Anne, hoping for her approval. Subtly, she nodded. Gilbert smiled at that.

Just then, the announcement came on the PA system. “We will start the Halloween Parade right now, could all classes come down to the pavement? Thank you!” Mr. Barry announced.

The Halloween Parade was an annual tradition every October 31rst for the Avonlea school. It was a way for all the kids to see each other’s costumes because they might not get to that night. They all walked in a circle around the junior field. Youngest kids went first and older kids were at the end. They all walked with their classes, and even posed for a class photo together. It was a sweet tradition and Anne was glad to finally be participating. They were the oldest class, so they were the rear. When they got out there, they all had fun. Anne waved at Jerry in the Grade 7 class in front of them, dressed as a Pirate. Diana also waved at Princess Minnie Mae in the Grade 1 class behind them, because the Kindergarten classes were not allowed to do this yet. Instead, they had a smaller parade on the pavement with just their parents. The parents of the rest of the school were in the centre of the junior field, taking pictures of their kids with their friends. Marilla wasn’t there, but Matthew was. Anne waved at him and he took pictures with his camera. Gilbert noticed his dad wasn’t there, but Matthew volunteered to take pictures of him to send to his dad. Gilbert was grateful of Matthew, and couldn’t think of a better, kinder man to raise Anne. He was happy they found each other, watching them laugh and smile together warmed his heart.

When the parade was done, they all went inside. Diana jogged ahead to talk to her sister, leaving Anne alone. Gilbert jogged ahead to talk to her.

“Hey, Hermione,” Gilbert said.

“Hello Harry!” she greeted him with her British accent. “Top of the morning to you!”

“I believe that’s Irish, not British,” Gilbert smiled, “but you got the right group of islands. Looking forward to trick or treating?”

“So much!” Anne said enthusiastically, dropping the British accent in her excitement. “Diana and I are going out together after a dinner of Bangers and Mash. Matthew wanted to give me some special British food to get me in the Hogwarts spirit.” Anne was smiling so much and bouncing up and down in excitement. 

Gilbert smiled with her until she calmed down. “It’s nice to see you happy,” he commented.

She paused, thinking carefully, before extending a invitation to her long-time rival. “You know, if you don’t tell anyone, you _could_ come over every Wednesday. We could watch Jane the Virgin, or any other shows you recommend, but always under the strict understanding that this is just a friend thing, not a budding romance thing.”

“Of course!” Gilbert agreed hastily. “Also, I would recommend Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Also, One Day at a Time. Maybe Riverdale, but it’s a bit derivative for my tastes. It’s like Dawson’s Creek with updated references. Sorry, I'm just so excited.”

“Sure, but I need you to promise not to tell anyone. It will be our secret,” Anne said.

Gilbert wasn’t too happy with that last part, but agreed anyway. Anne went back to Diana, leaving Gilbert to watch her as she ran, her long Hogwarts cloak flapping in the wind behind her. She looked beautiful like that, with her wind running through her hair. Not her hair, technically a wig, but still. Wind was a good aesthetic for her, he decided.


End file.
